Comments on: What makes you talk about a company or brand? http://bradjward.me/index.php/2009/09/02/what-makes-you-talk-about-a-company-or-brand/ Thoughts on Business, Entrepreneurship, and living the dream. Tue, 21 Dec 2010 22:49:07 -0500 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 hourly 1 By: Tim http://bradjward.me/index.php/2009/09/02/what-makes-you-talk-about-a-company-or-brand/comment-page-1/#comment-7 Tim Thu, 17 Sep 2009 13:29:50 +0000 http://bradjward.me/?p=20#comment-7 Agreed. Giving away free stuff all the time definitely isn't sustainable. But I think it can be like throwing gasoline on a fire to help a truly valuable product spread. That Squarespace promotion really did work on me. I never heard of it before it started the Twitter promotion. So I checked out the site to see what all the fuss was about and I super impressed. But it wasn't until months later when I finally decided I needed to upgrade. Now I'm working on a new site with their service and am glad I am. Agreed. Giving away free stuff all the time definitely isn’t sustainable. But I think it can be like throwing gasoline on a fire to help a truly valuable product spread.

That Squarespace promotion really did work on me. I never heard of it before it started the Twitter promotion. So I checked out the site to see what all the fuss was about and I super impressed. But it wasn’t until months later when I finally decided I needed to upgrade. Now I’m working on a new site with their service and am glad I am.

]]> By: Shiela Ward http://bradjward.me/index.php/2009/09/02/what-makes-you-talk-about-a-company-or-brand/comment-page-1/#comment-2 Shiela Ward Wed, 02 Sep 2009 18:59:44 +0000 http://bradjward.me/?p=20#comment-2 Interesting Blog topic! This same subject just came up at my business this week. A salesman stopped in to ask me to pay $350 to have my coupon for $3 off a pizza put on the local grocery store receipts. He was raving about how many the "other pizza place" in town was getting turned in. I explained to him 1)I don't have to give away food to get people in my door. I have built a solid reputation and provided 15 years of great food, quality & prices and that's what keeps customers returning. 2)Even with Brand X giving the $3 off, my prices are cheaper than theirs without a coupon. I find they tend to raise prices then do the coupons & BOGO specials to draw people in. They use a lower quality of product on their specials. The customers that don't just shop prices notice when these changes are made. I feel a business should build loyalty through consistency, service and quality- Not through giveaways. The Discounts and promos should be used to reward loyal customers. When I see a business constantly doing giveaways, I know their profits are dropping and they will soon be gone. Stay affordable and consistent with quality and you will win every time! I may be from a small town of 3,000 but I feel this rings true from the small shops like mine to the major companies across the country. Interesting Blog topic! This same subject just came up at my business this week. A salesman stopped in to ask me to pay $350 to have my coupon for $3 off a pizza put on the local grocery store receipts. He was raving about how many the “other pizza place” in town was getting turned in. I explained to him 1)I don’t have to give away food to get people in my door. I have built a solid reputation and provided 15 years of great food, quality & prices and that’s what keeps customers returning. 2)Even with Brand X giving the $3 off, my prices are cheaper than theirs without a coupon. I find they tend to raise prices then do the coupons & BOGO specials to draw people in. They use a lower quality of product on their specials. The customers that don’t just shop prices notice when these changes are made.

I feel a business should build loyalty through consistency, service and quality- Not through giveaways. The Discounts and promos should be used to reward loyal customers. When I see a business constantly doing giveaways, I know their profits are dropping and they will soon be gone. Stay affordable and consistent with quality and you will win every time! I may be from a small town of 3,000 but I feel this rings true from the small shops like mine to the major companies across the country.

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